The Waker of Winds and Keeper of Keys
by Igor Lollipop
Summary: My first crossfic. Follows the events of the Wind Waker with a twist... involving Sora, Kairi, and Riku from the Kingdom Hearts series! It's going to be good, trust me. See profile for summary. Rated T for violence/language. So obviously AU that it hurts.
1. Chapter 1

**A/n: I can't believe I'm doing this. xD' If you're a reader of mine, then you know I have this odd habit of writing too many stories at the same time. Hah. I apologize if you're reading one of my other stories because, for the time being, I am on a bit of a vacation. Please don't hurt me! -ducks as sharp objects are thrown- At any rate, I've wanted to do a KH/Zelda crossover for a very long time, but I finally got my butt into gear and have done it! Very exciting. This story is mostly just for fun. I'm not sure how seriously I'll be updating it. Depends on how many ideas I have... So, without further ado, let's begin! This chapter/prologue thing takes place on Destiny Islands at the tail end of KHII. I hope this story will please KH and Zelda fans alike. :3**

**Disclaimer - I don't own anything from Kingdom Hearts or Legend of Zelda.**

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"Sora! Riku!" A girl's voice called from a few feet away, distracting Riku and Sora from their conversation about the Door to Light. They looked towards the bridge leading from the second floor of their shack to find an auburn-haired teenager around the same age of Sora running towards them. Her bright violet eyes were masked with concern and confusion as she approached them.

Sora turned towards the girl as she came around the long paopu tree and doubled over. "What's up, Kai?"

Kairi shook her head, obviously unable to summon the breath to respond, and instead held out her right hand. She was holding a bottle with a message inside, but it wasn't just any message. In fact, the paper had a mouse symbol imprinted upon it: The symbol of King Mickey. Sora hastily grabbed the bottle and dumped the parchment out of it. As he unfurled it, Riku and Kairi bent their heads over his shoulders in order to read.

"Riku, Sora, and Kairi," read Sora aloud. "I'm sorry to bother you fellas so soon after defeating Xemnas." Kairi scowled somewhat. So soon? Xemnas had only just been defeated a couple of days ago. Summer had only just started. Riku noticed his friend's distressed expression, reached over, and patted her arm lightly. "But there's something I need you to check out. The worlds are alright, don't worry. But... there's sorta a rift between the Radiant Garden and Twilight Town, so I was hopin' you could check it out.

"I don't know where it leads, so I think it would be best for you fellas to prepare yourselves for whatever may lie ahead. It probably doesn't mean a whole lot; my keyblade can't be summoned, so... just be pals and check it out for me? You don't have to leave immediately. Just kinda as soon as possible. Thanks a lot, fellas! Wishing you the best, King Mickey. P.S. Donald and Goofy say hi," Sora, Riku, and Kairi managed small laughs at the final part. When he was finished reading, Sora rolled the letter back up and measured the expressions on Riku and Kairi's faces. "So, what do you think?"

"That this is a little ridiculous," murmured Kairi, obviously not too pleased to be leaving home so soon. "But I get to come with, so that makes everything a little better," she added with a weak smile. Sora and Riku chuckled.

"On another bright side," began Riku, who was not usually an optimist, "The three of us appear to be going on a mini-adventure _together_. From the start. Not meeting up with one another at some point or another."

Sora nodded. "That's nice," he agreed, "but..."

"How are we supposed to tell our parents?" finished Riku as Sora's expression became miserable. The other two nodded. "Well, we'll show them the letter; maybe that'll help soften the blow. In the meantime, the day's still young, so let's just hang out here for a while."

"The rift can't be too bad," remarked Kairi in a much more optimistic tone. "For all we know, it might just be a vortex leading to another part of the galaxy, right?" she added to Sora, remembering that he had encountered a few in his first adventure.

Sora nodded and slung an arm around Kairi's shoulders. "I'm sure, Kai."

**XxxxxX**

As promised, the three of them spent the remainder of the day lazing around on the children's island, something that they hadn't had the chance to do for quite some time. Kairi had been there most recently, of course, but she had stopped visiting once she forgot Sora's name. "Why don't you think King Mickey can check it out?" wondered Sora. He had an idea of the reason, but he was curious to know what the others were thinking. Sora was sitting on the paopu tree, as was Riku, and Kairi was swimming around the isle.

Kairi stopped moving and turned towards them, throwing her wet hair out of her eyes. "Well..." She paused, unsure of the answer. She turned towards Riku.

"He is the king of Disney Castle," replied Riku with a small shrug, "and after everything that's happened there, I'm sure he's not too eager to leave in case of some other situation. Maleficent's still out there somewhere, after all." Kairi shivered, but it had nothing to do with being in the cold water. "I'm sure he doesn't think much of the rift, which is why he's sending us. It's summer, he knows that, so we don't have a lot of schoolwork to worry about."

Both Kairi and Sora nodded their agreement. "That sounds about right," agreed Sora. "But Riku and I do have a whole lot of school stuff to make up, don't we?" He added to Kairi who grinned and nodded.

"Oh, yeah. Maybe they'll be a little more lenient when they learn that you two have been busy saving the worlds."

Riku snorted. "Doubt it. The Principal wouldn't cancel school even if there was a huge Heartless invasion. In fact, I doubt he'd even let the three of us _leave _the school to take care of said Heartless." Kairi giggled and Sora grinned. Their principal was a bit of a hard ass. Bit was probably an understatement, too. "Anyway, you know one of the things I've been missing since we came home?"

Sora tilted his head to the side and watched his best friend. "No, what?"

"Sea salt ice cream," answered Riku. Their laughter nearly drowned out a question that came from the shore.

"'ey, Riku, Sora!" called a boy with a heavy accent. "You want to play some ball with us?" The boy was tall, more so than Sora, had carrot-orange hair, and was throwing a blue and white ball up and down in his hand. Standing beside him was a blond with medium-length hair and a wide, competitive grin.

Riku and Sora glanced down at Kairi. She laughed. "Don't let me stop you, okay? Go on, play some blitzball! Beat Tidus and Wakka!" The boys jumped off the isle, and ran to join Tidus and Wakka on the beach. Another girl waved Kairi down from the pier, and she swam towards her. "Selphie, what's up?"

"Kairi," the girl began with some surprise, "You got your pink dress all wet."

Kairi shrugged meekly. "It's not the first time, and it certainly won't be the last." The two of them looked towards Riku, Sora, Tidus and Wakka, who were trying (and failing) to play a game of blitzball. "They're going to blame us that their game is sort of ineffective," laughed Kairi.

Selphie nodded. "Because we won't play as goal keepers, but this is really nice, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is. It's nice for us all to be together again," agreed Kairi. "I bet Hayner, Pence, and Olette would love to come and play blitzball. We should invite them some time. Well, Olette might prefer to hang back with us rather than play with the guys."

Selphie giggled. "They get a little bit competitive, don't they?" Riku pushed Tidus to the ground, but it was less ferocious and more playful. Once Tidus was on the ground, Riku spiked the ball at the pier, which was serving as Tidus and Wakka's goal.

"Score!" cried Sora enthusiastically while Selphie rubbed her head, which had been hit by the ball. The ball, in the meantime, fell into the water and was lifted further into the ocean by the waves.

"Got it!" called Kairi before anyone could ask her to do such. She front crawled towards the ball, which was being picked up relatively quickly by the balls. When she finally managed to catch up, she was breathing hard. "Geez, I have to get back to swimming more often," she mumbled to herself as she grabbed the ball. When she did, she noticed a small fish swimming around her.

At first, she thought nothing of the fish until it bit her leg rather viciously. Another one, seemingly appearing out of no where, joined it and bit her foot. "Ouch," growled Kairi before she hurled the ball back to the beach and backstroked to her haven. More of the fish were swarming at her. She knew that the islands didn't have piranhas, especially not so close to the beach, and the fish looked nothing like piranhas did, anyway. These fish looked completely skeletal.

Kairi shook the thought from her head. Maybe their gills were just really, really transparent and she couldn't see a difference. She grabbed the ball and threw it once more. This time, it landed promptly on the beach, and Kairi pulled herself onto the pier beside Selphie. At the very least, the fish appeared not to have followed her. "Ooh, Kairi, what happened?" asked Selphie as her eyes settled on the cuts on Kairi's legs and feet.

Normal fish did not leave deep cuts in people's bodies. Fish didn't have teeth, really, particularly ones they used on humans. What exactly had Kairi come upon? Kairi lifted her legs onto the pier as the salty water was burning her injuries. "Whoa. Kai, you okay?" asked Sora as he joined them.

"Some fish were biting me out there. Not your average fish, either," she murmured with discontent as she tried to stop the blood flow with her hand.

"Here," murmured Riku as he also joined them and gave her a potion. The cuts instantly disappeared, and Kairi smiled her appreciation. "Weird. Maybe the Islands got some other world's fish when we restored the world. It's happened, probably." They gazed towards the horizon and noted how low the sun was getting below the water. "This means we should probably go home and talk to our parents."

Kairi shook her head and put it in her hands. "Mom and Dad are going to do everything they can to lock me inside the house. You guys are probably going to have to go on without me."

Selphie looked from Kairi to Sora and Riku. "Wh-what? You guys are leaving _already_? Again?" she demanded as she stood up. Sora, Riku, and Kairi exchanged surprised glances. They hadn't really expected such a strong reaction from one of their friends but, at the same time, they had. Their friends had been without them for quite a while (in Sora and Riku's cases) and just long enough (in Kairi's case) for the reactions to be bad, but they had no choice.

"Selph, I'm sure we won't be gone that long. The King's not worried, and neither are we," remarked Sora calmly. He flashed her a grin. "We might miss a few days of blitzball, but we'll make up for it when we get back, I swear."

Although Selphie didn't look fully convinced, she nodded and pointed at Wakka and Tidus. "Well, you're going to have to break it to _them _yourselves."

**XxxxxX**

Tidus and Wakka had been much calmer than Selphie had been, but that hadn't been such a big shock to Riku, Sora, or Kairi. Wakka had promised to drill the three of them hard when they returned. Before darkness could fall upon Destiny Islands, Sora, Kairi, and Riku rowed their boats across the ocean, back to the island where their homes and school were located. Kairi closed her eyes when they reached the path leading from the beach to their neighborhood. The summer breeze was blowing gently, casting some loose leaves from their trees.

She shivered lightly, and Sora reached out and pulled her close to him out of reaction. When they both realized what he had done, they blushed and parted. Riku smirked as he gazed at the distant houses at the top of the path. "It's still weird to be back, but it feels right. I'll miss being home," admitted Riku.

Sora nodded. "Yeah, but as long as we're together this time, I'm not too worried. We'll be back soon; I know it." Kairi also nodded, but something deep within her heart begged to differ with what her head wanted to believe. They continued on in silence until they reached a fork in the road. Riku headed to the right, surprising Sora and Kairi.

"I'm going to pick up something from the store before I go home. You know, to soften the blow," remarked Riku with a curt wave. "See you two tomorrow morning."

"We're going to leave bright and early, Riku," called Sora as Riku started down the path. "See if you can't get some sort of supplies for the trip, okay?" Riku waved his hand in acknowledgment. Sora turned back to Kairi and smiled. "Guess it's just you and me."

Kairi, still wet from her swim, walked a little closer to him as they started towards home. Again, Sora pulled her close to him, but they pretended that it was a friendly gesture and not a romantic one. Nonetheless, their faces burned as they walked. "I'll see if I can find any spare potions or anything in my room," murmured Kairi as they walked. She had purchased some things in Twilight Town and the World that Never Was during her free time in both worlds.

"I'll check, too," agreed Sora. To him, it felt like there was something hanging in the air as they reached the Mayor's house, Kairi's home.

Before Sora had the opportunity to say anything, Kairi half-heartedly moved away from Sora's body and turned towards him. "I know that the three of us are going on this journey together, but I want to give you my lucky charm. You used it for a keyblade, I know, and I want you to be able to use it again if you choose to." Kairi fished inside of the brown pack sitting at her hip and pulled out her star charm. For some reason, her heart beat quickened when she stared at it, and the charm temporarily looked like a plain, yellow star. She shook the thought from her head as she gently grabbed Sora's hand and placed the charm in it with a smile.

Sora returned her smile as he gripped the charm in his hand. "Thanks, Kai. I'll take good care of it; I promise."

"You better!" replied Kairi as she placed her hands on her hips. They laughed, falling quiet quickly when the front door flew open. The mayor of Destiny Islands, still dressed in a blue suit, was standing in the doorway, staring at the two teenagers. "Hi, Daddy." Again, Sora and Kairi were blushing.

The Mayor was a little on the plumper side and his brunet hair was graying and balding. Still, he faced the two of them with a large smile. "Hello, Sora, so nice to see you! You had fun with Riku and Sora today, Kairi?" he asked his daughter who nodded her head vivaciously and bit down on her lip a little.

"I had a great time, Dad, but, uh..." Kairi cast a quick glance at Sora. "I want to talk to you about something."

The stare did not go unnoticed by the Mayor. "Honey, I already told you that you can't date until you're already married."

Kairi's face turned as dark as her hair. "Uh, that's not what I was going to ask, Daddy," she mumbled as she stared down at her purple shoes. "Why don't we go inside and I'll talk to you and Mom together?" The mayor nodded.

"Yes, yes, good idea. Dinner's on the table. Sora, would you like to stay?"

Sora held up his hands and shook his head, smiling apologetically. "I'd love to, Mayor, but I think Mom's probably worried sick about me, so I'd better go home. See you tomorrow, Kai." He waved at the two of them before turning tail and heading in the direction of his house.

"What a good kid," remarked the Mayor before he and Kairi also headed inside of the house. Kairi's mother met them in the foyer. Her silky brown hair was tied in a bun at the top of her head. "So, sweetie, what did you want to talk about?"

Kairi held up her index finger, opened her mouth, decided against it, and put the finger to her lips. She grasped her hands behind her back. "You're not going to like hearing it," she murmured.

_'Have faith in yourself,' _a voice said deep within her. Kairi wasn't sure if she was recalling the time Naminé had said such a thing to her or if the Nobody was now saying that in the back of her mind. Either way, Kairi knew she was right. "Dad, Mom, Sora, Riku, and I got a letter from King Mickey." Her parents nodded their head in understanding; she had explained everything with Sora and Riku the day that they had returned to the Islands. Of course, when she had returned to the world right after it was restored, she'd been forced to tell her parents (and the others) what had happened. What she knew and had been told, that was. Sora and Riku had filled in all the holes when they'd returned the last time.

"King Mickey wants the three of us to check out a vortex in outer space. It's probably nothing, but he needs someone to check on it. We're going to leave tomorrow morning, but I know we'll be back soon. I promise." When Kairi finished, neither of her parents spoke for a few minutes.

"I don't want you to go," admitted her mother with a sigh. "But I know that we won't be able to hold you back; it's in your blood to be doing these things. I know that as long as you're with Sora and Riku that you'll be okay. So it's... alright. You can go. Of _course _you can go."

Kairi threw her arms around her mother's neck and smiled. "Thank you, Mom. I promise we'll be okay." When she disentangled herself, she looked towards her father. "Dad?"

"It's not _safe_," protested the Mayor.

Kairi's mother glared at him. "Harry, she's a princess that's not even from here. Aside from that, she's a keyblade wielder and she's very brave. Have some faith in our daughter, alright?" Again, Kairi felt a rush of appreciation towards her mother.

The Mayor held up his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright. You just stick with Sora and Riku and come _back _with them, alright?"

Giggling, Kairi nodded. "Okay."

**XxxxxX**

As Sora headed for his house, he found many questions plaguing him, but they weren't questions about the journey or even questions about what was going to happen with his mother. They were questions about _Kairi_. Had she been blushing so much because she'd been embarrassed that anyone would think of her liking him as more than a friend? Did she really like Riku after all? Did she like anyone at all? Maybe she liked some bad boy from school. While he and Riku had been gone, she'd found another new duo to form into a trio.

The lucky charm felt like it was burning a hole in his pocket. Sora pulled it out and squeezed it in his hand as if it could reassure him in some way, shape, or form. Surprisingly enough, it worked. Before he knew it, he was standing on his front porch. "Mom?'' called Sora as he entered the house. He only had to walk into the dining room to find his mother sitting at the table with an ample amount of food sitting there. His place was already set.

"Sora, did you have a good day?" asked his mother as she brushed some of her medium-length hair out of her face. He could tell by her tone alone that there was something more she wanted to talk about, but she was waiting. Sora sat where his place was set and began to heap food onto his place.

"I did. I forgot how great it was to be with Selphie, Tidus, and Wakka."

His mother tilted her head to the side and smiled, if not a little knowingly. "What about Riku and Kairi?"

Sora laughed. "I could never forget how great it is to be around Riku and Kairi," he assured her. She reached over and fondly ruffled his hair. "Mom, was there something you wanted to ask me?"

She sighed, replaced her hand into her lap, and nodded. "Yes, there is. I was going to ask why it's taking so long for you to ask me."

"Ask you what?"

"Sora, I'm not stupid," laughed his mother. "I knew before you came into the house that tomorrow would be the day that you would leave again. Call it a mother's intuition. Seeing your face and hearing your voice just confirmed it." She reached for his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Honey, I'm not going to be angry with you. Just say it. Go ahead."

He frowned somewhat. "What if what I wanted to ask you about had nothing to do with an adventure and everything to do with something else?"

She laughed again, but released his hand and patted it. "Alright, then. What is it?"

"Alright, you're right. King Mickey wants Riku, Kairi, and I to go check something out, but..." He trailed off and shook his head. "Forget it."

"No, no. What is it?" she pressed, sitting a little straighter in her seat. She searched his eyes, then stared at his hand and noticed the charm. "A girl. But not just _any _girl; Kairi. What about Kairi, Sor?"

A blush burned onto Sora's cheeks. "Well... it's just that I sort of wanted to know..."

"Where you stand with her?" finished his mother with a nod. That was one thing Sora would be forever thankful for when it came to his mother: the fact that she picked up on subtle hints, always. "Sora, Kairi has always had something for you, I think. You can see it in her eyes, the way she acts towards you. You just need to make the first move."

"Why do I have to make the first move?" mumbled Sora although he knew it was a pointless question.

"Because I'm sure Kairi isn't sure if you feel the same way."

Sora frowned. "What if she doesn't like me; what if she likes Riku?"

"The two of them _do _like each other," agreed his mother, making Sora inhale sharply. She smiled a little at his anxiety. "Like siblings. Riku looks at Kairi like a little sister, and she looks at him like an older brother. That's why he's always looking out for her. Now, ask me. _Ask _me what you originally planned to ask me."

A smile finally appeared on Sora's face. "Mom, can I leave with Riku and Kairi early tomorrow morning to check out the rift in space that King Mickey wants us to look at?"

A wry smile touched his mother's lips. "Absolutely _not_, Sora." He stared at her incredulously. She laughed. "I was just kidding, honey. I just wanted the chance to finally tell you that you can't go on one of your dangerous adventures, but of course you can go. Just be safe and take care of Riku and Kairi, alright? Now, eat your vegetables."

**XxxxxX**

When Sora finished dinner, desert, and talking with his mother a little, about an hour had passed. He trudged upstairs, pulled some clothes out of his dresser, and collapsed on his bed at the same time as he grabbed his phone and dialed Riku's number. Riku picked up on the first ring. "So, how'd it go?" asked Riku although he knew that he didn't need to.

"How do you _think _it went?" laughed Sora. "What about you?"

"My mother cried a little, and my father disowned me, but they said I can go." Sora could, thankfully, tell by Riku's tone that he was kidding. "You didn't even laugh, Sora. Something wrong?"

Sora thought to bring up what had passed between himself and Kairi. "It's just that it wasn't very funny, that's all, Riku," remarked Kairi from a third line. Sora closed his mouth. There was no way he was talking about it with Kairi on the line. "Right, Sora?"

The only response Sora could form was a laugh. "She's right, Riku."

"You two have just been away from me too long to appreciate my humor," decided Riku. "I bet Naminé does, and Roxas, and even DiZ-- I mean, Ansem the Wise, did."

"Two Nobodies and a dead king," murmured Sora. "Not the best people to go to for something like that." Kairi managed a weak laugh, but something inside of her begged to differ.

"I don't think Naminé appreciated that, Sora," remarked Kairi although she was laughing a little harder now.

Riku grinned with satisfaction. "That's because she knows that I'm the funny one, not Sora." And the three of them burst into laughter for the umpteenth time that day. "I'm going to see if I can find any spare potions laying around. I'll meet you two..."

"In the Secret Place bright and early?" suggested Kairi. "Bright and early meaning around six." Sora and Riku groaned.

"But I've really grown attached to _sleeping_," protested Sora.

"Too bad, Sora. You have to be the Keyblade Master again," stated Kairi, grinning. "I'm going to take a shower; see you two in the morning."

Riku grumbled, "Six is _not _morning; it's an ungodly hour. See ya." Their phones clicked as Riku disconnected.

"See you tomorrow, Sora," chirped Kairi cheerfully. "Sweet dreams." She all but sang the last word before also clicking off the phone. He listened to the dial tone as he stayed on the line, thinking more about her words than what was probably necessary.

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**A/n: Very SoraKairiRiku centric. More importantly, very Sora/Kairi centric. Couldn't help myself; sorry. xD' Sora and Kairi are my second favorite pairing. Yeah, I couldn't leave Naminé out of this chapter, even if she didn't physically speak. Sorry. x3 Next chapter, they'll be leaving and Zelda stuff will finally be included. Aside from the fish that were already mentioned, of course. x3 Please review and stick around for the next chapter. :3 **


	2. Promise

**A/n: I am... pleasantly surprised at the feedback for this story! Quite a few alerts and one review? Gotta be honest, that's more than I expected. Thank you for the reading and reviewing, and I apologize for the lag in updating. Onto chapter two!**

**Disclaimer - The fact that I'm doing this story should tell you something about what I own. Which is an unhealthy amount of love for Kingdom Hearts and Zelda.**

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With a yawn loud enough to rumble the cavern of the Secret Place, Sora stretched his arms over his head and entered the more spacious part of the cave. "Aren't you slow?" remarked Riku, who was leaning against the wooden door, with a wry grin on his lips. Kairi had perched herself on a boulder not too far away, one with a monster scribbled upon it.

"Riku got here faster than you, Sora," said Kairi with a wink, "I wish I could say I'm surprised, you lazy bum."

Sora mock-groaned as he approached his best friends. "I guess some things never change, huh?"

With a lighter but more serious tone, Riku agreed, "Yeah."

"So," Kairi began in an effort to break the stiffening silence that threatened to begin, "Where are we going to get a Gummi ship to go check out this rift?"

Riku and Sora laughed. "Whenever we are magically able to fly, Kairi. Otherwise, there's no way to get there." Sora, who had been seriously considering the flying remark, was caught off-guard when Riku asked, "Any bright ideas, Sora?"

Sora lifted his index finger. "I would suggest getting some of Tinker Bell's fairy dust, but I don't think we can float with it in outer space. So... no other ideas, nope."

"The king had to know that we couldn't -- with the exception of Sora -- magically poof anywhere. He had to have sent us a way to get there..." trailed off Kairi.

"But how would he know when we're leaving?" wondered Sora.

Riku smirked. "The king has his ways."

**XxX**

"For so long I have waited for this, the moment when I would climb out of my own personal hell and get my revenge," mused a hulking figure in the shadows of a candle lit room.

A bipedal, pig-like figure with a spear snorted in the center of the room. He had long grown used to the constant musings of his master. For weeks, it was all the master had been saying, it seemed. But he hardly noticed, at any rate. Instead, he drooled, "we sure did in those pirates, didn't we, boss?"

The "boss" glared back at his lackey. "Yes, yes, the bloodshed was great. Now, has King yet found her?"

"Who's that, sir?"

The glare he received was withering. "'Who's that, sir?' '_Who's that, sir?'" _boomed the man as he stepped into the light. He was large in both height and width. His hair was the color of the blood of the pirates he had slayed, and his skin was the color of tree bark. He glared down his hooked nose at the pig, which he could have faintly resembled. "I should color this fortress's walls with _your _blood! You are absolutely a disappointing swine!"

"I-I'm sorry, Sir Ganon! Forgive my impudence."

Ganon nodded. "Very well, then. No news about any green-garbed child, correct?" Understandably, Ganon was always quite nervous about being returned to the hell of imprisonment by one of the descendants of the infamous Link.

"None, sir. I'll go ask the guard about the King's progress, sir."

"Yes, yes, you are excused," sighed the evil lord before returning to the window.

**XxX**

"You know, I _was _wondering how we were going to get to the rift," remarked Kairi, squinting, as she stared into the sky. "I guess Riku was right about the King." She heard a quiet chuckle and something that sounded like, "When am I not?" The crunching sound of sand and slight shadow alerted her to Sora's presence behind her.

With a goofy, large grin plastered to his face, he remarked, "Donald and Goofy are coming after all!" Two Gummi ships rushed into a landing, one in the water and the other on the beach. The door of the beach ship opened smoothly.

"Goofy!" An angry quack erupted from the ship.

"Donald!" Sora shouted shortly before tackling a white duck dressed in a blue, zipper-covered sailor suit.

"Sora," came a shout from the shoreline. A tall, dog-like figure wearing a tall yellow hat matching pants of the same color and a black vest was crawling out of the water. He was dripping wet, which Donald quickly complained about as the dog threw himself onto Sora and the duck.

"Goofy! Wow, I can't believe you guys are here!" laughed Sora. Kairi and Riku exchanged short greetings without piling on top of the trio.

"Sora, Kairi, Riku, ya ready for your mission, hyuck?" wondered Goofy.

"Mission?" snorted Riku, sounding like his old self. "I'd hardly call it that."

Donald grinned briefly. "I think getting to the ship will be mission enough," he said as he gestured to the ship floating in the water.

Kairi's height visibly slumped. "We have to swim all the way over there?" she demanded, recalling her early encounter with the strange piranha.

Sora grinned. "Last one there's a rotten egg!"

**XxX**

A sigh, obviously one of boredom, hissed out of the mouth of a boy standing at the very top of a tower's ladder. The girl whom his eyes were fixed on was a small girl with blond hair tied into two small pigtails. She was wearing a long maroon sun dress with a white skull depicted at the bottom. A group of seagulls were hovering around her and in the sky just around the tower. "Big brother, do you get bored being here? Do you sometimes wish that you could leave?" wondered the girl as she turned around and closed up an orange and gold telescope.

The boy, wearing a pair of brown pants and blue shirt depicting a crab gazed at his kid sister for a moment. Then, he shrugged, muttering, "I dunno."

"Sure you do, big brother!" chirped the girl. "You seem so bored, but not me. I love to just be on the island and play with the gulls. You even have more friends than me and you're bored. Only Sue-Belle will play with me..."

The boy rolled his eyes somewhat. "And so do I," he pointed out before climbing onto the tower completely and approaching the girl. He picked her up and carefully seated her on the railing of the tower. "Sometimes, I just want to leave the Island and see what the rest of the world's like. If there _is _a rest of the world..."

"You know there is, big brother," chided the girl. "Sue-Belle is from somewhere else, she said. I don't remember where, though..."

"You know, Aryll, that's perfect. Why don't you go ask Sue-Belle about her island? Then, you can tell me about it later."

A perfect little smile formed on Aryll's face. "Yeah! That's a great idea!" she agreed. Her brother carefully took her off the rail, and she hurried down the ladder. He turned back to the ocean, peering into the distance for a sign -- any at all -- that there was more life outside of Outset other than the fish they caught and ate and distant grey blobs that were, supposedly, other islands.

**XxX**

"Everything looks good out here," reported Riku as he shot down a Heartless ship. "I'm guessing we'll be back in time for dinner."

Kairi smiled as she leaned back in her chair. "Sounds good, but I hope we get back in time for lunch, seeing as how we left at seven."

"Hey, look! The rift!" shouted Sora. Kairi and Riku quickly looked in his direction. The rift was, quite simply, that; it was a gaping hole in the ozone layer. The hole crackled with orange and pink electricity.

"That looks dangerous," mumbled Kairi, her nails digging into the back of Sora's chair. "What are we going to do?"

Sora shifted the ship's gear into drive. "We can't just leave it here. What if it sucks up one of the worlds?"

"Then the World that Never Was really will never be," argued Riku. "Besides, _we _might get sucked up. Don't be stupid, Sora."

Kairi, biting her lip, nodded. "Listen to Riku. We can go tell the King how lethal this looks and _he _can come up with a plan." Sora refused to respond to either of them. Instead, he hit the gas, plunging even closer to the rift. "Sora!" shouted Riku and Kairi with alarm.

"We came this far; we can't just turn around!" argued Sora. They closed in on the vortex when Sora cut the gas -or tried to. The vortex's own gravity had a grip on the ship and was pulling them in.

"Son of a bitch, we're going in!" exclaimed Riku. "Sora, come on, do something!" BUt Sora was in shock, his hands uselessly clinging to the wheel and his electric blue eyes wide. Riku pushed Sora out of the chair promptly. He tried turning the ship and hitting the gas, but nothing would work. "Damn it. Strap in, Kai, we're going in!"

**XxX**

"What _is _that?" demanded a tan, blonde girl as she stared up at the darkening sky. A gleam was in the air, around other stars, but it was falling through the sky. The girl watched the object with skeptical blue eyes.

A tall man wearing a red bandana, dark pants, and long-sleeved olive-colored shirt replied, "A shooting star, miss." He looked away from the sky and examined the girl. "Miss Tetra, you are wearing down your hair for a change."

The ten-year-old nodded her head as the wind blew about her long, golden hair and long, pink nightgown. "It's the wind of change, Gonzo. I've been seeing a girl like this in my dreams," she confided, her voice dropping in volume. "So I thought I would give it a try -- but just for bed. Don't want the others thinking I've gone soft."

Gonzo nodded. "But what are you doing up, miss?"

The girl simply smiled. "That's for me to know, Gonzo. Maybe it had to do with the shooting star,"

"Well, miss, don't forget to make a wish!"

**XxX**

"What is that hunk of junk?" demanded Ganon of one of his underlings, a blue Bokoblin.

"Some sorta ship, sir?" answered the goblin-like creature.

Ganon pursed his lips. "Hn. Helmaroc King, take it down," he ordered as simply as if he were requesting a meal.

WIth a screech that carried across the Great Sea, a gigantic navy-colored bird with dagger-like talons and brightly colored feathers took off into the sky. Its amber-colored eyes glared at its target from behind its face mask. The Helmaroc King rushed at the ship, knocking it higher into the air and, at the same time, clawing through the metal and gummi blocks. He struck his beak through the windshield.

Way to Dawn miraculously appeared in Riku's hand. "Get back," he ordered Kairi, who crawled backwards, pulling the apparently unconscious Sora with her. The bird squawked as Riku struck at it with his keyblade. The Helmaroc King clamped its beak around the teeth of Way to Dawn before yanking Riku outside of the ship.

"Riku," cried Kairi as Radiant Destiny appeared. She poked her body through the windshield and struck at the King's neck, hitting it with the blunt edge. With another croak, Riku was dropped into the water below and Kairi was snatched. "Let go, you overgrown turkey!"

The bird gave her a look that said, 'Alright.' With a flick of its head, Kairi was thrown into the distance, quite a few miles west. Finally, the beast head-butted the ship with enough strength to hurl it to the other side of the world.

Ganon chuckled quietly. "Yes, the winds of change are upon us, alright. Go fish that boy out of the water," he added to the overgrown Kargaroc.

**XxX**

On an island that was not terribly far from Ganon's fortress, a small, almost bird-like child was taking a late night walk. Her long hair was the luscious red of a fresh rose, tied back in a ponytail. She walked slowly, her large red eyes searching every inch of the island while her hands remained locked behind her back.

She finally stopped at the shore, her eyes full of sorrow. "Valoo, how could you kill her? I wasn't even close to finishing my training... This is all so terri--huh?" Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of a flash of pink in the water. Gingerly, the girl started toward the object.

A hand settled on her shoulder, causing her to jump. "Medli, what're you doing?" asked a boy with amber eyes and short, white hair. His eyes were tired-looking and bloodshot around the red irises.

"Prince Komali," gasped Medli, "you should be asleep! You scared me."

He grinned briefly. "I can't sleep and I don't want to. We'll never get our wings now... it's hopeless. How can anyone sleep with that thought?"

"Don't say that!" reprimanded Medli. "Please, Komali. I'll try to talk to Valoo, or something. We just can't give up."

"It's too dangerous! I don't want you to end up like my grandma. It's not worth it." Medli opened and shut her mouth a few times. Only a quiet groan broke the awkward silence. Komali held out his hand to stop Medli and slowly crept closer to the water. Another louder and longer groan sounded.

Kairi, soaked, was laying half on the shore and half in the water. "Ugh... who... who are you?" she mumbled weakly.

Medli quickly moved in front of Komali and toward Kairi. Her eyes moved with expert speed over the girl's body. "A human," she breathed, scrambling into the water in an attempt to hold up Kairi. Kairi tried to focus her eyes on her savior, on anything at all. She was quite sure that there were still unfocused, for it appeared that Medli and Komali both had orange beaks and talon-like feet.

"What... are you?" murmured Kairi, knowing it was a rude question but also not caring. "You're a girl... but with a beak and bird feet."

Medli's eyebrows pulled together. "I'm a Rito. You know what a Rito is, don't you?" Kairi shook her head, at which point Medli placed the back of her hand against Kairi's forehead. "No fever. Where did you live? On any major island? No... you must be from a secluded island." Medli quickly turned toward Komali, who obviously had no clue what to do. "Komali, go get someone. Tell them that a human washed up on the shore and that she's in bad condition."

Komali nodded and sped off and, for a moment, Medli fixated her eyes on the only light -- that of the bubbling volcano a mile or so away from the shore. Then, she glanced back down at Kairi. "I'm Medli; I'll take good care of you. What's your name?"

"Me?" It took a moment for Kairi to form a response. "I'm Kairi..."

"And do you know how you got here?" asked Medli gently.

"I was with my friends, Sora and Riku," answered Kairi, making sure to skip over the details. "We were separated when a huge bird attacked us... It threw me across the ocean and dropped Riku into the water. I don't even know what happened to Sora..." Kairi quickly shot up and into a sitting position. "My friends. I've got to find them. They... They're probably hurt and we promised that we would stick together this time!" Kairi stood up quickly, only to sway and fall to her knees in the water.

Medli placed a hand on Kairi's shoulder. "Don't worry, Kairi. We'll find a way to help you, I promise."

"Promise," repeated Kairi, recalling that she had given Sora her lucky charm back. She closed her eyes and pictured herself handing it over to him in the Secret Waterway. "Promise."

* * *

**A/n: I feel like I should have made this a lot longer for how long it's taken me to update. But I hurt my right hand (of course, my dominant hand...) and it's a wonder it's this long at all. At any rate, I hope I've pleased you all! Please review and I will try to update soon!**


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